Garron blinked his eyes open. His vision was blurry at first. It felt as if he was waking up from a deep sleep.

The cold sting of the stone floor beneath his back grounded him. He groaned as he turned his head. He caught his breath sharply at the sight that lay before him.

Corpses. Dozens of them.

The mutated wolves lay in heaps, torn apart limb from limb, their monstrous forms sprawled across the cavern like discarded dolls.

The Blood across the ground had dried into black smears, and the stench of death hung thick in the air.

Garron hastily pushed himself up and glanced around.

The other members of our party—Jessa, Zeek and Nia were also beginning to stir awake. They were each lying across the cavern floor, their expression etched in confusion.

Zeek clutched his heads, while the Nia and Jessa blinked in shocked at the carnage around them.

I rubbed my eyes and sat up from the floor along with them.

Not too long ago, I had sent my orcs home before undoing the sleeping spell I had casted on them earlier. In order to cover my tracks, I pretended to be waking up with my party.

"What happened?" I asked aloud.

Jessa clutched her bow and scanned the cave, her face pale and her voice shaken.

"The wolves… they've been slaughtered. All of them. What… what happened here?"

Zeek, lying nearby pushed himself up on his elbows and looked around, dazed. "I… don't understand. Last I remember, we were surrounded. Then everything went dark."

Jessa looked at him, then at the others. "It's a mystery," she said, her voice trembling. "But what matters is we're alive. We're safe. That's what's important now."

No one replied her. We were all still trying to adjust to our surroundings.

She stood fully to her feet, brushing the dust from her robes. "We need to report this to the guild. They'll want to know everything."

Just then, Nia's soft cries drew everyone's attention.

She had knelt beside Kuro's corpse.

His black fur was torn, his side riddled with deep gashes. One of his fangs lay shattered on the stone nearby.

Her hands trembled as she stroked his muzzle gently, tears streaming freely down her cheeks.

"Kuro…" she whispered. "You stubborn beast. You always protected me."

Our party gathered around her, feeling the grief radiating from her.

"Nia, he's dead," I said. "Crying won't bring him back."

"I know," Nia's voice broke as she went on. "It's going to be almost impossible to tame a fine beast like him again… He was my only family…"

I watched her silently, my hands still resting on my knees. There was nothing I could do to help her. I haven't touched resurrection magic. In this world, it's the rarest magic that's ever been practiced.

So I said nothing.

We just watched her, allowing her to grief her beast companion.

* * * *

The sun had just begun to dip beneath the horizon by the time our party returned to the guild, our clothes stained with dried blood and dust from the mines.

The guildhall buzzed with the usual clamor of adventurers drinking, bragging, and scanning the quest board.

But all that quieted the moment we stepped through the doors.

Garron walked up to the front desk and placed a leather pouch filled with monster parts on the counter—twisted fangs, shredded hide, and a few blackened claws that had survived the battle.

The clerk, a spectacled man with a sharp nose and tidy uniform, raised an eyebrow. "You're later than usual, Garron. This was a rather easy quest. What took you so long?"

Garron exhaled slowly, then began to explain. "There was a massive infestation beneath the mines. Mutated wolves—dozens, maybe hundreds. We were ambushed and overwhelmed. It was an A-ranked danger level quest. We thought… we thought we were going to die."

He paused, glancing at the others behind him—Jessa nodding faintly, Zeek holding his staff blankly, and Nia staring at the ground.

The clerk was surprised. "That is quite unfortunate. How the hell did you all survived such an unexpected attack?"

Garron replied, "Something strange happened in that mine. When we woke up after being unconscious, the wolves… they were all dead. Not one left standing."

The clerk leaned in, his eyes bulging. "You're saying someone saved your party from an A-ranked danger level quest and vanished?"

Around them, other adventurers began to quiet down, their ears perking up at Garron's words. Several stepped closer muttering loudly.

Another adventurer, older and grizzled with a grey streak running through his beard, nodded slowly. "I'll say there's a hero among us," he said. "That's the only explanation. Someone extremely powerful."

"A hero?" another scoffed. "You kidding me? We haven't had a hero in centuries. The last one died five centuries ago after defeating the Demon King."

"Exactly," someone else jumped in. "But imagine if it's true. If someone like that's alive today… he could turn the tides in this war. The Demon King wouldn't stand a chance."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd, adventurers pressing in closer with excitement.

"Then why is he hiding?" a younger adventurer near the back called out. "If he's really a hero, why doesn't he step up? Show himself?"

Another slapped the table and shot him a look. "Maybe he is showing himself. In his own way. Maybe this is his message to the Demon King: 'I'm here—and I'm coming.' We need to spread the word. Let the people know. We'll be saved at last!"

The guild erupted in a sudden wave of energy, cheers and loud claps echoing across the hall.

Tankards were raised, fists pumped into the air, and voices lifted in celebration of hope not felt in generations.

Meanwhile, the clerk and receptionist remained focused on Garron's story.

The clerk took Garron's samples, nodded at the documentation, and handed over a pouch of coin.

"Well done," he said, sliding the reward across the counter. "And… thank you for reporting everything. Whatever happened out there, it's made a mark. The guild would carry out a private investigation into this matter."

As the coins jingled in Garron's hand, he turned slightly to see the rest of the hall still celebrating. The talk of a new "hero" was spreading like wildfire.

Garron gathered his party near the guild's central table, away from the roaring adventurers still caught up in the excitement of the mysterious hero.

He untied the coin pouch and began counting the reward.

He split the gold carefully, giving each member their fair share. "Zeek, Jessa—thank you for sticking through that mess. I don't know how we made it out, but I'm grateful."

They both nodded silently, still a little shaken, but appreciative.

Then Garron turned to Nia and held out her portion.

She didn't take it.

"I… I don't want it," she said softly, stepping back. Her eyes were red, her voice trembling. "Kuro's gone. He was my friend. This gold means nothing to me now."

Garron paused, guilt flashing across his face. He lowered the pouch slowly.

"Nia," he said gently. "I understand. It hurts. I really do."

He exhaled, then looked her in the eyes, steady and firm. "But this is the life we chose. Every day we go out there, we risk losing someone. Friends, companions… even the ones we call family. It never gets easy. And it's not supposed to."

Nia didn't say anything. She looked down, hugging her arms close.

"If you can't learn to carry that weight and move forward," Garron added quietly, "then maybe adventuring isn't for you."

I stood beside her, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder. "He's right, Nia. Loss is hard. But strength isn't just swinging a sword or casting spells. It's being able to stand after everything inside you wants to collapse."

Jessa knelt in front of her and wiped a roll of tears from her eyes. "You're stronger than this, Nia. Don't let pain be the thing that breaks you."

Nia didn't speak, but her lips quivered. Slowly, she gave a faint nod, eyes glistening with fresh tears she refused to let fall.

Garron then turned to me, handing over my share of the gold.

"You earned it," he said.

I took it without a word and tucked it away in my satchel.

Garron gave the group a final glance and smiled faintly. "Thank you… all of you. Whatever happened down there, I'm glad we faced it together. Let's recover, rest, and when we're ready—we'll do this again."

Nia and I waved him farewell as our party broke up for the day.

The moment Nia and I stepped away from the table, the doors of the guild swung open again and a rush of footsteps came toward us.

The adventuring club.

Loki was at the front, his expression filled with open concern as he pushed through the crowd.

"I heard what happened," he said, his voice sharp with worry. "Are you guys okay?"

I stepped forward before anyone else could speak.

"We're fine," I said calmly. "The mission… turned out to be a lot harder than we expected. But we handled it."

Loki studied me for a second longer, then looked at the others. When he saw Nia's distant eyes, his shoulders dropped a little.

Sylria moved past him gently. Her silver braid bounced as she stepped close to Nia, placing a soft hand on her arm.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, and then without hesitation, she embraced her. "Kuro was a fine companion. I know how much he meant to you."

Nia tensed at first, but then returned the hug, nodding into Sylria's shoulder.

"I'll be okay," she murmured. "Thank you."

Bourin crossed his arms and grunted. "Aye, I've lost more than a few war boars in my younger days. It never gets easy, lass. But we press on. Tame another, train it well, and carry the spirit of the old one with ya."

Nia let out a small, bittersweet laugh and wiped her eyes. "Thanks, Bourin."

She stood straighter now, her voice stronger.

"I'll try again. I think Kuro would've wanted that. I'll find a new beast. Tame it. Raise it right."

Our club members encouraged her with a warm smile.

Then Nia turned to me, her gaze steady, her tone lighter.

"I want to go out tomorrow. Try taming again. Will you accompany me, Archer?"

I met her eyes, surprised at her request, but then I nodded.

Once.

"Yeah," I said, a small smile curling my lips. "I'll be there."

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